


Strange Land

by Dream_wia_dream



Category: Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein
Genre: Angst, Love, M/M, Regret, Short
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-04-19
Updated: 2011-04-19
Packaged: 2017-10-18 09:39:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/187527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dream_wia_dream/pseuds/Dream_wia_dream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An interlude between Mike & Ben</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strange Land

"Mike, I…can I?" I stutter gracelessly as I carefully open the door to his room.

 _Ben, come in_ he smiles as he stretches, the planes of his body all catlike grace and elegance. 

In the moments before I pushed into the room, I know he had been deep in a trance. But every gesture, every movement was now filled with a gentle readiness. An enthusiasm almost, for anything from household repairs to making love. Oh, I really shouldn't think about that right now.

 _Why shouldn't you think that, Ben?_ I hear as he pushes softly into my mind.

"Oh, you know I don't…can't" I'm still stammering. No matter how lightly he treads, I'm always startled by that push into my head.

 _Come here_ He reclines into the softness of the padded floor, reaching one hand out for me. _Come and join me. Tell me what you need._

I sink slowly to the ground, and shift until I'm sitting cross-legged beside him. I stare at my hands in my lap, unable to speak, or even think the question that I want to ask. The question that's been on my mind for days.

 _You don't really have to ask, you know. Please, come here, next to me. There is nothing so momentous that we can't find the answer. Come, drink deep brother._

And as much as I want to sit and have a conversation about this. As many things as I'd been thinking of to say, I couldn't resist. I can't ever resist Mike. Stretching out, laying alongside his warmth, I begin to let go of my questions, my fears, and my unhappiness.

He gathers me in his arms and lies back again, sighing. I shiver and burrow my body more deeply into the heat radiating from his body.

 _You want to know why it wasn't me? Why didn't I welcome you myself when you came to us?_

"I…I guess that's it, Mike. No, it's more than that. I know, I've talked in generalities to some of the others. I know what their acceptance into the group was like. And I was wondering, why…I mean why was it so different with me" _Why was I so easy to pass off?_

 _So, now we get to your real feelings, the real meaning behind your question. You want to know why I didn't offer myself to you. You weren't ready to have me be your entry into this group._ The soft, petting strokes of his fingertips along my back are soothing in a way I've never felt before.

 _Mike…I think, no I know that I love you. I love Jill. I love…no, it's more it's what you've, I. Even in my thoughts I can't get it straight I want to tell you something and I don't have the words._ I bury my face in his chest, unable to even watch as I try to say the words I can't find.

 _Shhh…don't fret, Ben. The words will come when they are ready. You don't need to tell me, I know. I will take care of you.  
_  
He lifts my head, and presses his lips to mine. A whispered benediction catches my ears, and retreats quickly. Soft sounds of love and devotion fall from his mouth. The words are foreign to my ears, but the meaning is plain.

I open my mouth to devour his words, taking in that love and swallowing it whole. 

We make love. We fuck. I wrap myself up in Mike. I lose myself in him. Time means nothing, but for the time I can spend here with him.

I feel the last pulse of pleasure leaving my body, wracking my frame. I open my eyes. And I'm alone again. Mike is gone. I'll never feel his body pressed against mine. I'll never have him hold me.

 _I'm always here for you Ben. I'll never really leave. I'm here with you, forever._

Phantom memories of touches I've never received. These are all I have left of the man I've come to realize is the reason, the reality, the love of my life.

**Author's Note:**

> A sad little melancholy piece that I hope someone else gets. 'Stranger in a Strange Land' has long been my favorite book. And I know there's little to no fandom for it at all. I just hope that someone might actually read it and love it like I do. :D


End file.
